Alpine racers step up in doubleheader

Two weeks of foul weather cancellations gave way to sunny skies and warm temperatures at Mt. Bachelor for the Sisters High School alpine ski racers last Saturday, February 11.

The racers pulled out all the stops in a two-race slalom derby. The two-race, four-run event totaled a full third of the race season for the under-achieving Sisters racers.

“Coming into this event we hadn’t achieved our potential,” said Coach Todd Williver. “We were a very fragmented team, in jeopardy of not making it to the State Championship.”

The Lady Outlaws had been stuck in third place through the first three races, chasing the hard-to-catch Summit High School girls. The Sisters girls got the best of the Summit Storm in the opening race of the season, but had fallen short in the two subsequent races and the chances for a state championship invitation seemed bleak.

At best the girls faced a hard battle to overtake the Summit team, needing to place higher than the Summit team in all three remaining races to insure a spot at the Championship. Weather forced a cancellation of the fourth race and then high school obligations and racer attrition made good team performance at the fifth scheduled race unlikely.

“I told the girls I thought our ship had sailed,” said Coach Williver. “Barring some unforeseeable events, I couldn’t see how the math could work in our favor to give us enough points to match Summit’s performance and get our girls to state.”

But the unforeseeable did happen and weather forced a cancellation of a second consecutive race. No one currently involved with the Central Oregon Ski League remembers back-to-back cancellations for any reason, including weather, in the history of league. The reprieve turned back the clock for the Sisters girls and allowed them another chance to go to State. But it was still an uphill battle. The girls team still needed to place ahead of the Summit girls in all of the next races.

The boys also faced challenges. Although the hopes of getting the team to the state championship had faded a few weeks earlier, there were still several boys competing for individual spots at the championship race.

A push to get the race schedule back on track after the weather cancellations led to the double-header slalom derby this past Saturday at Mt. Bachelor.

“We had a great training day on Thursday before the race,” said Williver. “I let them all know what we had to do if we were going to get to state and the girls took my challenge. They were noticeably hungry and for the first time working for a common goal.”

During the first run of four on Saturday, the girls blew away the competition. Led by Sisters standout Liz Dale, followed closely by Annie Hancock and Jenna Sneva, the team smoked the Summit and Bend High School girls for first place.

“For the first time this season I think the girls realized how good they are,” Williver said. “It really set the tone for the rest of the race.”

A fall by Sneva in the second run placed the Sisters team in jeopardy of losing time to the Summit girls, but a step-up performance by Kelsey Newport protected the Sisters lead over Summit, although they lost time to the Bend High School team.

With one race down the girls set their sights on the second race of the day. A rocky start again placed Sisters hopes in jeopardy but another lifesaving run, this time by Joelle Hamilton, kept the girls’ hopes alive. A flawless second run secured the second-place team position, ahead of the Summit Storm realizing the first two-thirds of the team goal.

“The girls absolutely came to ski,” said Williver after the event. “We knew what we needed to do and realized our potential for the first time this year.”

According to Coach Williver the result left the girls team two points ahead of the Summit girls and solidly in second place in the league standings. With only one race left the combined team times of the Sisters girls made it nearly impossible for the Summit squad to catch or overtake the Sisters team. Mathematically, the only way the Summit girls could go to state was to win the sixth and final race and even then the Sisters team would have to finish third or worse, something that hadn’t happened all year with a full girls team roster.

The boys race was equally nail-biting. With only two individual spots up for grabs, several of the Sisters boys had a chance to go to the State Championship. First race falls by Sisters’ Lucas Rietman and Jake Thomas ended their hopes early, but veteran racer and team captain Michael Cristiano followed two solid runs in the first race with two more later in the day for his best performance of the year. A fourth run fall by Redmond High School’s Quency Fahlgren gave Cristiano a three-point edge, securing the second transfer position for the state slalom race. Mtn. View High School’s Ryan Anderson had already secured the first position a few weeks prior.

Originally a make-up race was scheduled for next week at Mt. Bachelor to conclude the sixth race of the season. But a busy weekend schedule expected at Mt. Bachelor prompted the mountain’s management to cancel the sixth race, ending the Central League’s regular race schedule with only five races complete. The cancellation solidified the Sisters girls’ state championship bid, but won’t allow a second Sisters boy the opportunity for a Giant Slalom individual placement.

“When it mattered, our boys and girls got the job done!” stated Coach Williver after the news of the sixth race cancellation. “We knew we would be given another chance, it was now or never and we absolutely stood up and achieved our goal.”

The Oregon High School State Championship will be held March 1-3 at Mt. Hood’s Ski Bowl.